Permanent Roommates worked because it was relatable - Nidhi Singh

Nidhi Singh became a household name with her portrayal of Tanya in The Viral Fever’s (TVF) widely-loved web series Permanent Roommates, opposite Sumit Vyas. So much so that, people started identifying Nidhi and Sumeet as Tanya bhabhi and Mikesh bhaiyya, respectively. The story revolved around a young couple, who after being in a three-year-old long distance relationship, starts living together and contemplate marriage.

Now, the web star has made the big switch to feature films with ad filmmaker Aleya Sen Sharma’s Makhna (working title) alongside Saqib Saleem and Taapsee Pannu. She’s also doing Nikhil Bhat’s Brij Mohan Amar Rahe with Arjun Mathur and Manav Vij. “Makhna is a rom-com portraying the youth. We shot half of it in London and the other half in Delhi. All of us hit it off so well, it felt like a party. We had a ball,” she smiles. “Saqib is amazing. I believed he had an attitude. But within five minutes, he was cracking jokes and being goofy. He’ll not admit it but he’s a kind-hearted guy. Taapsee, on the other hand, is so inspiring, so real and has no airs. I love the way she conducts herself,” she says.

She goes on to talk about Brij Mohan Amar Rahe. “It’s a dark comedy based on an old play,” says Nidhi. Point out that she’s doing two different genres of movies and Nidhi laughs, “I’d gladly dance around trees too but the story has to be good!” She points out the difference between the two mediums – that is web and feature films saying, “On a film set, I had to make friends with everyone but in the web space we knew each other before we began shooting. In a web series, we are given scripts during each episode. But in films, it’s a bound script. There’s a lot more discipline in terms of scheduling. In a web series, things happen more on the go,” she says.

In high school, when Nidhi was introduced to Shakespeare, she started loving dramatics. “That’s when I thought of being an actress. My father’s a doctor, my mother’s a teacher. They wanted me to pursue academics. When I put my foot down, my parents were shocked,” shares Nidhi who hails from Allahabad.

A couple of years later, she found herself working in an advertising agency in Mumbai. The feisty girl, eventually, quit her cushy job to be an assistant director in commercials and also dabble with plays simultaneously. That’s when she got a chance to meet her childhood crush Hrithik Roshan. “It was a bike commercial and I was the second assistant director. I had braces back then. I had to go to his house for a costume trial,” she says. “My soul was shivering. He was preparing for Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Guzaarish and was in an emotional space. I just sat in a corner. Hrithik said, ‘Hi’ casually. But I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want him to see my braces… like it would’ve made a difference!” she laughs.

After a year, a focussed Nidhi started meeting casting directors. “It was while doing the play called Who Let The Dogs Out that I got to know Nidhi Bisht who introduced me to the core team of TVF,” she says. She started working with them and shot to fame in the web world with the video Every Delhi Girl In The World. But once Permanent Roommates happened, life changed completely. “People still call me Tanu from across the streets. I’ve started identifying with Tanya now. I still can’t believe the kind of appreciation

I got for it,” she smiles.

Because Tanya and Mikesh became such larger than life characters, people began believing that Nidhi and Sumeet are together even in real life. “We would just laugh about it. It’s funny and cute,” she says. Ask her what made Permanent Roommates such a rage and she says, “Maybe because it was relatable. Films always show the pretty things and drama in love stories… and miss out on the silly in-between things,” she says, adding that talks for a Season 3 are already on. Ask her if she’s aware that Season 2 wasn’t as successful as the first and she reasons, “You have to have that patience, calm and belief when you’re watching a web series.”

Nidhi’s parents watch all her shows. “They’re happy that I’m getting to do what I want. Somewhere, my mom has a sense of pride because I stuck to my word. My dad had asked me to be realistic in my dreams and at the same time not lose the joy of doing what I love,” she says. “After watching Permanent Roommates, my mother called and said, ‘You can act!’” she laughs. Now that she’s a movie star, will she say goodbye to web series? “No way man. Bring it all on!” she laughs.